The HST hit struggling families at the worst possible time. Instead of making life more affordable for people struggling with the recession, it made life more expensive. It shifted more of the tax burden off large corporations like banks and insurance companies and onto household budgets.

The HST takes a big bite out of the average family budget. That’s hard to cope with, but what hits hardest are new taxes on your daily household essentials. Your electricity. Your home heating. Gas for the car. You can cut a lot from your household budget, but everyone needs to heat their home, keep the lights on and commute to work.

The HST was negotiated behind closed doors without your input, your ideas or your permission. This backroom deal has a huge impact on you and your family but no one asked you what you thought about it. We’ve been listening.

New Democrats will take the HST off essentials such as electricity and home heating. We will start removing the HST from gasoline by one percentage point a year. These are daily essentials that don’t need a new tax.

These are simple steps to make life more affordable for families. Ontario needs change that puts people first.